LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 



PRE33NTED BIT 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



^ 









(^h ^'fir'/Cwt^^er^ 



PHYSICAL CULTURE 



AMHERST COLLEGE 



BY 



NATHAN ALLEN, M. D 



PREPARED BY THE REQUEST OF THE TRUSTEES. 









LOWELL, MASS: 
STONE & HUSE, BOOK PRINTERS 
1869. 



Q-/367 
,A5-A4- 



PHYSICAL CULTURE IN AMHERST COLLEGE.* 



I. Its Introduction. ' ' : 

Amherst College is very much indebted for the estab- 
lishment of the department of Physical Culture to the deep 
interest and personal labors of its President. At his inau- 
guration in 1854, several pages of his discourse were occu- 
pied in showing the important relations that exist between 
the mind and the body ; — that both should always be 
exercised in harmony with each other, and that no course 
of education w^as complete without devoting special attention 
to secure a good development and healthy state of the 
physical system. In his first report to the Trustees in 1855, 
upon the condition of the Institution, he says, "no one thing 
has demanded more of my anxious attention than the health 
of the students. The waning of the physical energies in the 
midway of the College course is almost the rule rather than 
the exception among us, and cases of complete breaking 
down are painfully numerous." 

And in his report for 1856, he says, — "the break- 
ing down of the health of the students, especially in the 
spring of the year, which is exceedingly common, involv- 
ing the necessity of leaving college in many instances, 
and crippling the energies and destroying the prospects of 
not a few who remain, is in my opinion wholly unnecessary, 

*The Trustees of Amherst College, at their annual meeting, July 8, 186S, voted, " that 
Dr. Nathan Allen be requested to present to this Board, at its next annual meeting, an 
historical statement of the influence of the Gymnasium." 

Edward S. D wight, Sec. B. 

(Presented at the annual meeting of tlje Board, July 5th, 183P.) 



if proper measures could be adopted to prevent it." He 
suggested that some lectures upon the subject should be 
obtained from distinguished medical gentlemen, and accord- 
ingly Dr. Morrill Wyman, of Cambridge, was employed, 
who, in the spring of 1857, gave two lectures before the 
students upon the laws of health. 

In President Stearns' Report to the Trustees for 1859, 
the health of the students again constituted a prominent 
topic. He says, " time and experience have convinced me 
of an imperious demand, in the circumstances of an academic 
life, for immediate and efficient action on this subject : 
many of our students come from farms, mechanic shops, and 
other active occupations, to the hard study and sedentary 
habits of college. Physical exercise is neglected, the laws 
of health are violated, the protests and exhortations of 
instructors and other friends are unheeded. The once active 
student soon becomes physically indolent, his mental pow- 
ers become dulled, his movements and appearance indicate 
physical deterioration ; — he makes occasionally spasmodic 
efforts to regain his former elasticity by exercise, but by 
finding discomfort more than advantage from it, he eschews 
exertion and becomes more inert than ever. 

" By the time the Junior year is reached, many students 
have broken down their health, and every year some lives 
are sacrificed. Physical training is not the only means of 
preventing this result, but it is among the most prominent 
of them. If it could be regularly conducted, — if a mod- 
erate amount of physical exercise could be secured as a 
general thing to everj^ student daily, I have a deep convic- 
tion, founded on close observation and experience, that not 
only would lives and health be preserved, but animation and 
cheerfulness, and a higher order of efficient study and intel- 
lectual life would be secured. It will be for the considera- 
tion of this Board, whether, for the encouragement of this 
sort of exercise, the time has not come, when efficient 



measures should be taken for the erection of a Gymnasium, 
and the procuring of its proper appointments. It is a settled 
conviction, in my own mind, that only by a certain amount 
of regular exercise, together with attention to other laws of 
health, can that listlessness and dullness and inefficiency 
which is so hostile to good scholarship and so common 
amoDg students, be overcome." 

In concluding his remarks the President stated, that 
two of the most promising students in the Senior class had 
just deceased, whose deaths had probably been occasioned 
by violating the laws of health in college ; and other stu- 
dents were fast breaking down their constitutions, and 
paving the way to follow them. The statement of these 
facts had at the time an impressive effect, and served to favor 
immediate action in the matter. The Trustees chose a com- 
mittee, consisting of the President, Dr. N. Allen, H. Ed- 
wards, Esq., and Col. A. H. Bullock, to take the subject into 
consideration, who reported at once, that it was expedient to 
erect a suitable building for a Gymnasium ; and, provided a 
certain amount could be raised by subscription, they recom- 
mended that an equal amount be appropriated for that pur- 
pose from the treasury of the Corporation. This report was 
accepted by the Board, and a committee was appointed, 
consisting of Hon. J. B. Woods, Prof W. S. Clark, Hon. S. 
Willistonand the President, with full powers to collect funds, 
procure plans, select a location for the building, and to make 
contracts for the erection and completion of the same. In 
obtaining subscriptions, and as a member of the building 
committee; Prof W. S. Clark, with his accustomed energy, 
performed efficient and sticcessful service. 

The place selected for the site of the building was east 
of the Grove, and directly north of East College. It was 
built of Pelham granite, two stories high, fifty by seventy- 
two feet ; and though the committee exceeded their first 
plan in the size of the building, still, if twenty feet more 



had been added to its length, the edifice would have been 
better proportioned and afforded more ample accommoda- 
tions. It is very desirable that this addition shall yet be 
made, as the wants of this department render it necessary. 
Upon the completion of the building, the name of " Barrett 
Gymnasium " was given to it, from Dr. Benjamin Barrett, of 
Northampton, who had contributed liberally towards its 
erection. Since that time, this same gentleman has put in, 
at his own expense, a gallery at the west end of the hall, 
and also paid a part of the annual expenses for repairs, im- 
provements, &c., &c. It is now hoped that some generous- 
minded individual may be found who will liberally endow 
this professorship of Hygiene and Physical Education, 
thereby placing it upon an independent foundation. 

As this department was new. and from its peculiar 
character might encounter more difficulties than usual, on 
account of which its teacher might desire advice and counsel, 
it was thought best by the Trustees to have a Gymnasium 
Committee. President Stearns, Drs. E. Alden and N. Allen 
were therefore appointed such committee in 1860 and 1861. 
Since that time, the President and Dr. Allen have served 
every year, with the addition to the committee in different 
years of Dr. Benjamin Barrett, Rev. William P. Paine, D. D., 
and Rev. L. Sabin, D. D. 

II. Its Plan. 

In his Annual Report for 1860, the President said, 
^^ one of the prominent subjects requiring attention at the 
present meeting of this Board is the Gymnasium. The 
Building Committee will report its cost, and the measures 
taken by them to secure its erection -, also what will be 
needed for its apparatus and other appointments. The 
Faculty are of the opinion that its exercises should be con- 
ducted iii some such manner as the following : 1st — The 



main object shall be not to secure feats of agility and 
strength, or even powerful muscle, but to keep in good health 
the whole body. 2d — That all the students, (unless there 
should be exceptional cases) shall be required to attend on 
its exercises for half an hour, designated for the purpose at 
least four days in the week. 3d — That the instructor shall 
assign to each individual such exercises as may be best 
adapted to him, taking special care to prevent the ambitious 
from violent action and all extremes, endeavoring to work 
the whole body and not over-work any part of it. 4th — That 
while it may not be expedient to mark the gradation of 
attainment as in the intellectual branches, yet regularity, 
attention and docility should be carefully noted so as to have 
its proper weight in the deportment column of the student's 
general position. 5th — That some time shall be allowed out 
of study hours for those volunteer exercises which different 
men, according to their tastes may elect for recreation, and 
particularly that the bowling alleys be not given up to 
promiscuous use, but be allotted at regular hours to those 
who wish to make use of them, — all these voluntary exer- 
cises, of whatever kind, to be conducted under the supervis- 
ion of the Gymnasium instructor. 6th — That the building 
shall always be closed before dark, that no light shall be 
used in it, and no smoking or irregularities of any kind 
shall be allowed in it. 7th — That the instructor (if a suit- 
able person should be employed) ought to be a member of 
the Faculty, and give in to it his marks and occasional ac- 
counts, and receive directions, as other officers of the college 
are accustomed to do. It must be obvious," he adds, " from 
this general view, that a teacher of very high qualifications 
will be demanded. With such a teacher we may be almost 
sure of success , with an inferior man our failure need not 
be foretold. 

" What we need is a professorship which shall extend 
over the entire department of physical education. 1st — The 



8 



officer should be a skillful gymnast, capable of conducting 
his classes, by example as well as precept, through all the 
exercises which the best training would require them to 
perform. 2nd — He should have a good medical education, 
with sufficient knowledge of disease, if not to manage severe 
cases, yet to know w^hether a student is sick or well, obeying 
the laws of health or breaking them, and, as a wise friend, 
to caution him, advise him and put him on the track towards 
physical vigor. 3rd — That he should have such knowledge 
of elocution as would enable him to teach those movements 
of the body, lungs and vocal organs which are essential to 
graceful and effective oratory. Elocution is properly a 
branch of gymnastics, and the highest degree of health, to 
say nothing of good manners and good speaking, can hardly 
be secured without it or a substitute for it. This officer, 
while having charge of gymnastics, would naturally teach 
physiology as far as might be necessary for all practical 
purposes, including the laws of health and the physical part 
of oratory ; and as he would be much with the students, and 
would be likely to have great influence over them, he ought 
to be a man of cultivated tastes and manners, — a man of 
honorable sentiments and correct principles, having high 
aims and a Christian spirit. Such a man, with such a work 
as I have now marked out successfully pursued, would be 
an incalculable advantage to the College and to mankind. 
We should not only have the honor of being the first insti- 
tution in the country which has ever sustained such a pro- 
fessorship, but we should probably save to the world a vast 
amount of physical and mental power which would other- 
wise be wasted, and further the great ends of education, 
tvhich are to make men'' 

At this same meeting of the Trustees, a Eeport was 
received from the Building Committee on the Gymnasium, 
appointed in August, 1859, which, with the preceding 
remarks of the President, was carefully considered by the 



Board, and referred to a committee consisting of Dr. N. 
Allen, Rev. Dr. Paine and Hon. S. Williston. The Report 
of this committee approved the doings of the Building Com- 
mittee, notwithstanding they had enlarged the original plan 
of the Gymnasium, and considerably exceeded the expenses 
first contemplated. It states that the structure first planned 
v^ould not have conformed with the other college edifices, and 
would not have been adequate in size and accommodations 
to meet all the wants of such a department. It recom- 
mended further appropriation to complete the building, and 
to equip it at once with all the necessary apparatus. It also 
recommended the following general plan, which was unani- 
mously 9,dopted : 

To ESTABLISH A DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICAL CuLTURE 

IN THIS College; and that the duties of its Professor 
shall he: 

1st. To take charge of the Gymnasium, and give 
instruction to the students in Gymnastics. 

2nd. To take a general oversight of the health of the 
students, and to give such instruction on the subject as may 
be deemed expedient, according to the general plan stated 
by the President in his Report, and under the direction of 
the Faculty, like all the other studies. 

3rd. To teach elocution so far as it is connected with 
physical training. 

4th. He shall give lectures from time to time upon 
Hygiene, Physical Culture, and other topics pertaining to the 
laws of life and health, including some general knowledge 
of Anatomy and Physiology. 

5th. The individual appointed to have charge of this 
department shall be a thoroughly educated physician, and, 
like other teachers and professors, shall be a member of the 
College Faculty. It is distinctly understood, that the health 



10 



of the students shall at all times be an object of his special 
watch, care and counsel. 

The title or name of the Professorship in this depart- 
ment having come under consideration by the Board, it was 
moved by Dr. Allen, (and the vote unanimously adopted,) 
that the style of this Professorship shall be '^ The Professor 
of Hygiene and Phi/ steal Education^ 

It was the intention of the Trustees to incorporate 
these exercises into the regular curriculum of college studies, 
and make it obligatory upon all students to attend upon 
them as much as on instruction in Mathematics or the 
classics. It should be observed, that nearly all Gymnasia 
connected with literary institutions, both in Europe and 
America, had failed to accomplish the results intended or 
expected, because no system of exercises was adopted in 
harmony with the laws of the body, nor did the character 
given them correspond to their importance, or to require that 
daily regular training, which was accorded to mental acqui- 
sitions. In the present instance, instead of leaving the thing 
to take care of itself, — for students to exercise or not, at 
their option or convenience, without any guide, system or 
instruction, — the Trustees determined at the outset to place 
the enterprise in the position which its importance and suc- 
cess demanded. To accomplish this object, two things were 
deemed indispensable : 1st — The living teacher — one 
thoroughly acquainted with the structure and functions of 
the body, with a knowledge of the laws of Hygiene ; — and 
2dly, this physical training must be made a part of the 
regular exercises of the Institution, and must be stamped with 
the same importance, authority, rewards and sanctions as 
are accorded to the other branches of study. 

With this feature in the history of Physical Culture, as 
connected with large literary Institutions, Amherst College, 
we believe, takes the lead. In fact, it is the first instance 
in the whole history of modern education where the claims 



11 

of the body, its proper development and healthy training, 
have been placed upon the same platform, and the same 
importance attached to them as to any other branch of study 
or mental acquirement. 

Great expectations were once raised from the establish- 
ment in this countr}'- of manual labor schools, and some of 
them attracted for a time large numbers of scholars, and 
enjoyed apparently great prosperity. But the experiment 
proved of short duration. They all failed and were given 
up, principally for two reasons : 1st — The pecuniary re- 
sults, which were held out as a leading motive, were not 
found practically to correspond to the anticipations created 
or promises made ; and 2dly, neither the work undertaken 
nor the employments pursued were of a character to interest 
properly the mind, and thus exert that beneficial influence 
upon the health which was desirable. They were not calcu- 
lated to develop harmoniously all parts of the body, and 
create a pleasurable excitement in the exercise itself And 
it is questionable w^hether any kind of work or employment 
suitable for a large body of young scholars to pursue 
together can be found, that will be remunerative, and, at the 
same time, productive of health and agreeable excitement. 
In this department, at Amherst, we have, in addition to its 
physical exercises, the services of a well-educated and skillful 
physician, who is the appointed supervisor of the health 
of the Institution, — whose duty it is to forewarn students 
collectively and individually of the first symptoms or appear- 
ance of disease, and whom they may feel at perfect liberty 
to consult in respect to all manner of weaknesses and com- 
plaints. Then, besides these physical exercises and the more 
public lectures on hygiene and health, this physician will 
have familiar talks with students just entering college upon 
the character and danger of habits of dissipation generally, 
and of private vice in particular, to which young men con- 
gregated together are peculiarly exposed. 



12 
III. Its History. 

At the meeting of the Board of Trustees, August 6th, 

1860, John W. Hooker, M. D., of New Haven, Ct., was 
appointed professor in this department. Dr. Hooker was a 
graduate of Yale College, and had spent some years in 
Europe in completing his medical education. He had given 
special attention to physical training, and, being himself a 
skillful gymnast, possessed qualities that eminently fitted 
him for starting such an enterprise. But before the close 
of the year his health failed, and he resigned his position, 
and died in about two years afterwards. 

Dr. Hooker, during his short residence here, made an 
excellent beginning in this department, by creating much 
interest among the students in matters of Hygiene and 
Physical Education, as well as in reducing the gymnastic 
exercises to regular system and order. On account of the 
martial spirit that everywhere prevailed at that time, the 
attention and co-operation of students were more readily 
secured. The urgent calls of our country for young men to 
volunteer as soldiers for the war raging at a distance, and 
the music of the " Fife and Drum," heard in almost every 
town and village at home, were peculiarly calculated in those 
times to inspire students with a fondness for physical exer- 
cises, and military drills. Such was the demand in this 
direction, that Col. Luke Lyman, of Northampton, distin- 
guished as a drill-master, was employed, in the Spring of 

1861, to give instruction and training to students in military 
tactics and exercises. 

At the annual meeting of the Trustees, August 8th, 
1861, Edward Hitchcock, M. D., a graduate of the College 
and of the Medical School of Harvard University, bearing 
a most-honored name, and possessing many qualities admir- 
ably fitting him for this charge, was appointed professor in 
this department. And in his first report to the Trustees, 



13 



Dr. Hitchcock remarks : " I am agreeably surprised that 
the interest has been kept up during the year in this depart- 
ment, as it certainly has. And I speak from knowledge on 
the subject when I say, that there is no more disposition to 
evade the duties of this department than there is of any 
other exercise of college. I have always insisted upon order 
and obedience to rules. I have had but little difficulty in 
securing them. During a portion of the exercises, I urge 
upon the captains the necessity of introducing playful exer- 
cises, such as running in grotesque attitudes, singing college 
songs, &c. Sometimes this may seem boisterous and undig- 
nified, but it seems desirable to me that a portion of the 
animal spirits should be worked off inside the stone walls 
of the gymnasium, under the eye of a college officer, rather 
than out of doors, rendering night hideous ; and in no 
instance has the captain found the slightest difficulty in 
bringing his men into line at the word of command." 

At the close of the third year, the Professor in his 
report says : " In regard to the success of physical exercises 
in the Gymnasium, as at present carried on, I can only reit- 
erate what was stated in my report one year ago, and this 
is that the plan originally proposed works admirably. The 
novelty passes off by the end of the first six months, and 
then the students regard the principal exercise in the same 
light as they do any other college duties. And I feel confi- 
dent of the truth of the statement when I say, that a required 
exercise in the gymnasium is no more irksome to the students 
than is a required duty in any of the literary and scientific 
departments of college." In July, 1864, the Professor says 
in his report to the Trustees : " The past year's experience 
shows that this department is being rapidly established upon 
a permanent and systematic basis." It may be proper to 
explain more in detail, how and in what way these exercises 
are conducted from day to day in the Gymnasium. The 
leading design is, that all the mwsples of the body shall be 



14 

brought into exercise in harmony with the laws that govern 
their natural action, and in a manner to promote the 
greatest possible amount of health. It is the practice 
of classes to perform some exercises together in concert, and 
they generally occupy one half-hour in the forenoon for this 
purpose ; sometimes sections of a class will go through cer- 
tain exercises, one right after another, and then again here 
and there individuals will be seen trying their agility and 
strength upon some parts of the apparatus. 

Each class has a uniform of its own, and forming 
together in a line, in the lower room, marches in regular 
order into the upper hall under its respective captain, fre- 
quently singing a lively song : the roll is then called by the 
Professor, absences and deportment marked ; the members 
of the class then dividing into sections, and obtaining their 
dumb bells, Indian clubs or wands, take their places in the 
central portions of the hall, where they go through with an 
almost endless variety of evolutions, assuming every position 
of the legs, arms and body possible. It is intended by the 
kind and variety of movement to exercise every muscle 
of the body in a manner to afford pleasure, not fatigue, and 
und'r such circumstances as to keep up an increasing inter- 
est to the close of every performance. These movements 
are made sometimes with great rapidity, and at other times 
very slowly, and then again interchanged from one kind to 
another, so that they shall not tire, and are performed appa- 
rently with remarkable ease and zest. 

A writer in one of the popular newspapers of the day, 
after referring to the regular performances, gives the follow- 
ing amusing description of these miscellaneous exercises : 
" And now," says he, " they lay down their clubs or dumb 
bells and perform a variety of genuflexions and prostrations 
on the floor, with more than Mahommedan zeal, or down on 
all-fours, play at leap-frog, and put themselves in every con- 
ceivable and inconceivable attitude, till in spite of them- 



15 



selves every man is in a roar of laughter. Then breaking 
up into smaller squads, or every man on his own hook, they 
chase each other along the parallel bars and horizontal lad- 
ders ; run up and dov^n inclined planes ; bound over horses 
from spring-boards ; turn somersets on springs ; mount up 
to the roof on a series of parallel spring-bars as if by magic ; 
and by magic come down again unhurt, and when they have 
gone through with all these evolutions and others too numer- 
ous to mention, (not all in every half-hour, of course, but 
always enough to touch every muscle in the most hidden 
recesses of the frame, and to call forth a gush of life and joy 
from the darkest and deepest fountains of the soul,) — after 
all this apparent medley of confusion, enough to distract 
almost as much as it amuses the looker-on, they are brought 
up standing at the expiration of the half-hour, like the sing- 
ers at the end of our old-fashioned fugue tunes, and sent 
away to their meals or to their studies, as the case may be, 
with an appetite to relish, and a stomach to digest without 
difficulty or danger classics or mathematics, physics or meta- 
physics, beef-steak or roast pig, mince pies or plum-pudding." 
On Wednesdays and Saturdays, the regular exercises are 
omitted, partly to give to the officers of classes, as well as indi- 
viduals, an opportunity to perfect themselves in gymnastics, 
but more especially because those days in college are gener- 
ally appropriated to miscellaneous duties, and the afternoons 
particularly to recreation, reading, work, business, &c. 

The question has often been asked, what kind of gym- 
nastics is best ? This depends on the object sought. If it 
is intended to make acrobats, pugilists, gladiators, or persons 
distinguished for physical strength or particular feats of 
agility, then it requires long training of certain muscles and 
distinct parts of the body, together with great care in the 
kind and quantity of food. 

Again, if certain parts or organs of the body are weak 
or diseased, and the hygienic influences of exercise are sought 



16 



to restore strength and health, in this case, particular muscles 
must be exercised in just such a manner, and to just such an 
extent as may be directed by a skillful physician. This is 
what has been denominated the movement cure, and has met 
with great success, both in Europe and in our own coun- 
try. 

But in an Institution where a large body of students 
require daily exercise, with as little exposure and loss of 
time as possible, the lighter gymnastics as here practiced 
are undoubtedly best adapted to effect the object intended. 
It is surprising what a great number and variety of exercises 
are here devised and practiced, amounting in the course of 
the year to some five hundred. The design is, that all the 
muscles of the body should be exercised in a manner to 
equalize best the circulation of the blood, — to expand the 
lungs, — to aid the stomach in the digestion of food, — to 
strengthen the joints, develop all parts of the body in har- 
mony with the most efficient action of the brain. Thus not 
only agility and strength of the limbs are acquired, but the 
vital forces of the system — fed from their natural sources 
of nutrition, absorption and respiration — are most abund- 
antly supplied. The true course pointed out for physical 
exercise is, imitate the natural action of the muscles, or, in 
other words, follow the laws of nature in bringing the system 
into the highest state of physical health compatible with 
mental exercise. If there is danger of injury from any 
source in this system, it will arise either from the too rapid 
movements of the muscles, or from excessive exhaustion of 
the system. Both these extremes should be carefully watched 
and guarded against. In some quarters an attempt has been 
made to draw a broad line of distinction between what are 
denominated on the one hand z^^^ light gi/mnastics,^ndi on the 
other the heavy, and to create prejudices in the community 
against one class or the other. Such a distinction is entirely 
unnecessary. There is plenty of room for both classes ; one 



17 



kind may be better adapted to certain purposes than the 
other: and again for other purposes they should go 
together. 

As an evidence that the public has been greatly inter- 
ested in this departmentj the number of visitors present from 
time to time is a pretty good index. At first no count was 
kept ; but from September 1st, 1866, to the close of the 
college year in July, 1867, there v^ere present at these exer- 
cises 5,958 persons as visitors, and from September, 1867, to 
July 10th, 1868, the number was 4,798, more than one-fourth 
of whom were ladies ; and the average number of visitors 
present at each exercise was over ten for both years. 

The newspaper press generally, and the Springfield 
Uepublican in particular, has always manifested great interest 
in this department, — speaking of it in the most commenda- 
tory terms. From many such notices we must, for the want of 
room, make only one quotation, from a correspondent in 
the Congregational Journal of October 23rd, 1862, published 
at Concord, N. H.: "No description," says this writer, " of the 
gymnastic manoeuvres can give any idea of them ; they 
are such as call into action every ligament, joint and muscle 
of the body, the whole frame, — not the least the chest and 
the lungs. No. snail-like movement is tolerated. All their 
motions are as quick and regular as those of the well-disci- 
plined soldier ; they march, run, hop, jump ; their legs and 
arms swing back and forth ; the dumb iron bell they throw 
over head and shoulders with quick regularity ; they run up 
long ladders with folded hands, their feet doing all the work ; 
they swing, climb, hop, jump from place to place, from pole to 
pole like squirrels, and all done in perfect order, under the 
command of company officers. 

" Now what is the effect of these gymnastic exercises on 
the students ? Good and only good, on body, mind, man- 
ners and character. They are greatly promotive of health. 
This is evident from the general appearance of the students. 



18 



Their countenances are ruddy, their persons erect, their step 
quick and elastic, their manners easy, their gait gentle- 
manly, all their motions indicate healthfulness and cheerful- 
ness. Casting my eye over the assembled college on sev- 
eral occasions, I was struck with the apparent joyousness of 
the students. No sad countenances were visible. 

" The gymnastic exercises greatlj^ promote the good 
order and morals of the students. Their animal spirits work 
off by the correct movements of the gymnasium. They are 
indisposed to the unmanly and often mischievous doings of 
students too frequent in our colleges. A citizen of the town 
assures me, that the amount of injury done to the college 
and other buildings in the village is almost nothing since the 
opening of the gymnasium, compared with what it was be- 
fore. No less advantageous, probably, is the gymnasium to 
the mental progress of the students. They come from the 
gymnastic exercises to their studies with healthful bodies, 
clear minds and cheerful spirits. The ' blues,' those most 
formidable enemies of successful study, assail them not. 
All is bright and promising, all hopeful. Time will undoubt- 
edly show that no one adjunct, no one department of col- 
lege, will conduce more to the noble object for which the 
Institution was founded, than the Gymnasium." 

When the subject was first agitated in respect to intro- 
ducing into college gymnastic exercises, there were various 
prejudices and objections to such a course. One of the orig- 
inal objections to the establishment of a gymnasium — arid 
it still exists to some extent — is the danger of some serious 
harm or injury befalling those engaged in such exercises. 
But such accidents very seldom occur in the regular prac- 
tice of gymnastics. It should be remembered, that the more 
one exercises in this way the better command of his limbs 
and body he obtains, and therefore is less likely to meet 
with injuries. During the eight years since the establish- 
pient of this department there have been quite a number 



19 



of braises and sprains, one broken limb and one dislocated 
joint, but no really serious or permanent injury. Consid- 
ering the great number and variety of exercises and the 
extraordinary exposures in the performance of daring feats, 
— that over six hundred students have taken a part in 
these exercises, and most of them, for a time, entirely inex- 
perienced, the accidents have certainly been very few in 
number and slight in character. And those that have taken 
place occurred generally out of the regular exercises, for 
the want of caie, or on account of some physical weakness 
of the individual injured. It is stated on good authority, that 
the accidents arising in ball-playing, — practiced only a few 
weeks each year, — are four times larger than those from 
gymnastics. 

Another objection to the introduction of such exercises 
was drawn from the fact, that, in one sense, all the students 
were to be compelled to engage in them the same as in any 
other branch of study or general college exercise. This was 
something new. It was pretended that the Trustees and 
Faculty of the College had no direct control over the bodies 
of students, and had, no business to direct when and how 
they should use their limbs. The plan proposed here of 
introducing gymnastics and making it compulsory upon all 
students to take part in them, was a new and advanced 
position in respect to a class of exercises or duties to which 
no members of a college or large literary institution in our 
country had ever been obliged to conform. It w^as appre- 
hended by some that opposition to this course might be found, 
or a question of discipline between the Government of 
the Institution and its members might arise upon the ground 
of right or propriety of compiihory exercise. But fortu- 
nately no trouble or difficulty of this kind or even the shade 
of any has ever arisen from such source. The students have 
always promptly and cheerfully responded to all demands 
made upon them in this direction. It is now the opinion of 



20 



the Professor as well as the general sense of the students, 
we understand, that they would rather dispense with any 
other department or college exercise than that of Hygiene 
and Physical Education. To no other task, exercise or duty 
connected with college studies and requisitions do students 
now more readily repair, or so heartily engage in as those 
of the gymnasium. 

But there is one feature in this department that deserves 
careful consideration, and which is here introduced by two 
quotations from the annual reports of the Professor to the 
Trustees. In 1865, he says, "I experience some trouble in 
being obliged to give excuses to new students on account 
of direction or request from parents or physicians, — many of 
of whom know nothing of our exercises except that they are 
styled " gymnastics," and hence infer that they are of the 
severer form of labor, such as formerly were always con- 
nected with gymnasia. The students themselves who apply 
for these excuses are generally of the effeminate class, or 
the decidedly lazy ones." 

In 1868 the Professor says, "I ought to speak upon 
one point, for fear that it might seem a weakness in the 
system unless fully understood. I am obliged to be more 
liberal in granting excuses for absences than are the officers 
of other departments. One reason is, because no idea of 
rank is attached to excellent and faithful performance at the 
gymnasium. Another reason is, our exercises in this depart- 
ment were established for recreation and exercise, so that 
extra work, such as wood-sawing, coal-carrying, other extra 
labor, &c., seem to be equivalent to an occasional exercise. 
Hence, one who is well acquainted with the size of a class 
might often wonder at the proportion of their numbers pres- 
ent at an exercise. I am, however, careful that these excuses 
shall be given only occasionally, and that no one student 
shall be in the way of obtaining excuses as a regular habit." 
It is possible that there may sometimes be found a young 



21 



student possessing a constitutional weakness or nervous 
idiosyncracy who should be excused from gymnastic exer- 
cises at the request of his parents or physician ; but such 
cases will seldom occur ; and then instead of being sent to 
college, such students should rather find a home in some 
invalid's retreat, or be placed under the movement cure for 
treatment. " 

In respect to the other topic referred to, it is, perhaps, 
the weakest point, and the source of greatest danger con- 
nected with this department. And the more excuses are 
granted on such grounds or expedients, the greater is the 
danger. Let a little choring, or work, or business, or a 
walk displace these regular gymnastic exercises to any 
great extent, and it constitutes a very weak point — an 
entering wedge, which if constantly, persistantly and suc- 
cessfully applied, would break down this whole department. 
In the first place the students themselves, as a body, should 
make it a conscientious duty, and should allow no incidental 
work or trifling consideration to interfere with their constant 
attendance upon these exercises. An examination of the 
table showing the number of absences in the different classes 
from these exercises, does not speak well for the higher 
classes, — that the absences should increase with each class, 
— so that those of the Senior class are almost twice as many 
as those of the Freshman class. 

While the Professor should pursue a most wise and 
judicious course in granting excuses, his general rule in the 
matter, if not resembling in fixedness the laws of the Modes 
and Persians, should certainly partake much of the Roman 
character. ' Something may be done by the other teachers 
in the Institution to sustain in this respect the Professor of 
Gymnastics, and to create the right kind of public sentiment 
upon this subject ; and in our opinion it should be a serious 
question with the Faculty of the College why improvement 
or excellence in performance here should not count in rank 



22 

or attainment as well as in any other branch of study. ' If 
punctuality and deportment are favorably considered, why 
not improvement and excellence ? Why not put this de- 
partment upon a par in every respect with the others in the 
Institution ? 

lY. Its Results. 

When the erection of a Gymnasium was first agitated, 
and even for some time after gymnastics were introduced, 
it was said by some persons that the whole thing was an 
experiment ; that after the novelty was over the interest 
would soon subside, and the enterprise would prove a failure. 
It is now eight years since this department was established, 
— eight different classes, numbering in all over six hundred 
students, have taken part in its exercises, and four classes 
have enjoyed its benefits throughout their whole collegiate 
course. What then has been the effect of these, upon the 
health of the students, as well as upon the sanitary condition 
of the Institution ? This may be exhibited in a variety of 
ways. 

1st. There has been a decided improvement in the 
very countenances and general physique of students. In- 
stead of the pale, sickly and sallow complexion once very 
commonly seen, with an occasional lean, care-worn and hag- 
gard look, we now witness very generally, fresh, ruddy and 
healthy countenances, indicative of a higher degree of vitality, 
and that tjie vital currents, enriched by nutrition and oxy- 
gen, have a free and equal circulation throughout the whole 
sj^stem. This change is so marked as to attract the atten- 
tion of the casual observer, and has been commented upon 
by those formerly attending Commencements or other public 
occasions here, as exhibiting a striking difference between 
the personal appearance of students at those times, and, that 
at the present day. This fact is also corroborated by the 
testimony of boarding house keepers, — some who have been 



23 



here twenty years or more, — who say that the students now 
have a more regular and natural appetite than formerly, 
manifested not so much in the quantity or quality consumed, 
as in a better relish for plain, substantial and wholesome 
food. There is certainly the promise of a more harmonious 
development of the whole system, — a better commingling 
of all the temperaments in the physical organization of the 
students now than formerly. 

2nd. In the use of the limbs and the body, — in the 
physical movements and conduct of students generally, there 
has been, we think, decided improvement. Once the awk- 
wardness of manner and the ungraceful bearing of scholars 
were matters of common remark, and such characteristics 
not unfrequently followed them through life. This resulted 
not so much from the want of early training and instruction 
on this subject, as from the formation of bad habits in study, 
and the long continued neglect of proper exercise. It was 
frequently exhibited in stiffness of the joints, a clumsy use 
of the limbs, in round shoulders and a stooping posture, and 
sometimes by a countenance set, stern and almost devoid of 
expression. Now gymnastics, when properly practiced, are 
calculated to produce in this respect, a surprising effect upon 
the use of all parts of the body, as well as upon its devel- 
opment. They give not only agility and strength to all 
the muscles, but a quick and ready control of them, thereby 
begetting an easy and graceful carriage of the person. In 
other words, they tend to bring out the most important ele- 
ments of a polished manner in the natural and dignified car- 
riage of the body, in the easy and graceful movements of all 
the limbs, together w^ith those expressions of countenance 
and those gestures which constitute the highest style of elo- 
quence, whether in conversation or public speaking. And 
what gives this physical culture so much advantage and 
heightens its power is the fact, that the mind, whose disci- 
pline is co'ordinate, is conscious of this power, — conscious 



24 



that it can direct, control and command every muscle or 
part of the body at its own will. 

3rd. The practice of gymnastics in concert is calcula- 
ted to beget personal sympathy, cheerfulness and buoyancy 
of spirits. The fact that a large body of students go through 
with precisely the same exercises together, at the same time 
and under the same genera] influences, — and these exercises 
continued for years, — creates a peculiar kind of sympathy, 
of interest and affection. In some respects it resembles the 
common practice of large companies eating and drinking 
together as expressive of their mutual good-will and friend- 
ship. It brings a whole class upon one common level, and in 
personal contact in such a variety of ways, that it tends to 
bind its members together by the strongest sympathies and 
bonds of fellowship. Exercises that would be monotonous 
and burdensome to the individual performed alone, when 
practiced by a large company, create the greatest interest 
and even enthusiasm. There is also a strong tendency at 
such times to mix in with these exercises no small amount 
of amusement and occasionally real fun ; the odd, the gro- 
tesque and comical, producing bursts of enthusiasm or shouts 
of laughter. All this with improved circulation, digestion 
and respiration must, in the very nature of things, produce 
cheerfulness, hopefulness and buoyancy of spirits, expelling 
from the mind all despondency, melancholy, and " the 
blues." 

4th. We come now to consider what has been the 
effect more directly upon the health of the students, and the 
sanitary condition of the Institution. It is needless to state 
how many students formerly impaired or broke down their 
constitutions for want of sufficient exercise, or from irregular 
or excessive hours of study, or from some improper habits, 
or for want of suitable attention to diet, sleep or some other 
physical law. Perhaps the effects of violated law were not 
always visible at the time, and did not apparently impede 



25 



the college course, but the seeds were here soiun which after- 
wards brought on disease and premature death, or crippled 
the energies and limited the usefulness through after life. 
This may still happen ; but with such exercise and instruc- 
tion as can now be obtained it is not near so likely to occur. 
Besides, where the vitality of the system is kept up by 
regular muscular exercise, to an even healthy state, it is 
one of the strongest safeguards against disease ; and then 
when any organ or portion of the body is affected, nature is 
more powerful to throw off the attack. In a community 
thus trained and instructed the more common complaints, 
such as colds, headaches, sore throats, feverish attacks, will 
seldom occur, and the diseases to which scholars are pecu- 
liarly liable, such as dyspepsia, neuralgia and consumption 
stand a far less chance of finding victims. Any skillful and 
experienced physician will testify at once, that such a com- 
munity is possessed of a wonderful power to prevent as well 
as throw off disease. The common proverbs, "a stitch in 
time saves nine^' and '^aii ounce of prevention is ivorth a pound 
of cure,'' are not more truthful than the statement here made 
of the remarkable exemption from disease of a community 
trained and educated as above described. 

5th. A comparison of the present health of students 
with what it was ten or fifteen years ago, shows a surprising 
improvement. It is rare now for any student to break down 
suddenly in his health, or to be compelled to leave college 
on this account. In 1855-6-7 and 8 such cases were 
common, as may be seen by referring to the statements of 
President Stearns in the opening of this paper ; and the 
truth of the statements is moreover confirmed by others 
personally conversant here for twenty or thirty years. As 
no record was formerly kept of the amount of sickness from 
year to year, or of the number of students leaving college 
on account of illness, no exact comparison on these points 
in figures can be instituted. But the experience and obser- 



26 



vation of those who have been on the ground a long time 
must bear decided testimony to a greatly improved state of 
health among the students over that of former times; and 
as for those who once were members of the Institution, and 
return here on public occasions, they cannot fail to see a 
great improvement in this respect. 

6th. But the evidence of improved health does not 
rest wholly upon individual opinions or upon loose compari- 
sons. Since 1861, a register has been carefully kept of the 
kind and amount of sickness in college, an analysis of which 
presents some striking facts. No student is placed upon the 
sick list, unless he is detained two consecutive days from the 
usual exercises of the Institution. The number of students 
reported sick ranges in the course of the year from twenty- 
five to sixty, showing a far greater amount of sickness in 
some years than others, which depends very much on the 
fact, whether some epidemic prevailed, or whether the year 
as a whole, either on account of the weather or from some 
other cause, was not generally unhealthy. If allowance is 
made for this extra sickness in two of the years out of the 
eight, the register shows that the actual amount of sickness 
in college has diminished in these eight years more than 
one-third. That is, in the year just closed, there were only 
two-thirds as much sickness as in 1861, the year when gym- 
nastics were introduced. 

Again, the average number of students sick each year 
of these eight was thirty-eight, and the average number 
present in college was two hundred and twenty-four, show- 
ing that there were one hundred and eighty-six students on 
an average each year who did not experience two days' 
sickness at any one time. The register reports forty-one 
different diseases or complaints to account for this sickness, 
and a careful inspection of the list shows a remarkable 
exemption from what are considered generally the more vio- 
lent and dangerous diseases. Most of the complaints were of 



27 

a common class that might occur in any community ; and the 
number which naturally would grow out of the usual exposures 
of college students is very small. In fact there are scarcely 
any diseases reported as connected with the stomach and 
the brain, organs which are, in some respects, the most likely 
to become deranged by the sedentary habits of student 
life. 

7th. But the most marked evidence of improved health 
is found in the diminished sickness of every class each year 
after entering college. In a table giving the amount of sick- 
ness arranged by classes, it seems there has been for these 
eight years on an average more than three times as much 
sickness in the Freshman Class as in the Senior Class. It 
may be said that the students upon first entering college do 
not know so well how to take care of themselves as they 
do in the third and fourth years ; or that some students who 
come here feeble and sickly, leave the Institution early, so 
that the vigorous and more healthy alone remain. This may 
account in part for the change, but only for a small part of 
it. For some students who now enter college with slender 
constitutions encounter considerable sickness the first year, 
but afterwards improve in health, and in the third and fourth 
years are comparatively well. And the number now leaving 
college during the first and second years, on account of ill- 
health is very small. Then again, if we compare the sick- 
ness or health of a class all the way through college now^, 
with that of one ten or fifteen years ago, a surprising differ- 
ence will be found ; if the sickness did not then increase or 
keep up through the whole course, it certainly did not 
diminish so much in the second and third years and almost 
entirely cease in the fourth, as is the case now. 

8th. There is still another class of facts very import- 
ant in their bearing, though their value can not be fully 
exhibited at present. These are properly denominated vital 
statistics, and consist of nine items to each student, taken 



28 



twice the first year and once each year afterwards. Every 
student upon entering college is examined upon these points, 
namely; his age, weight, height, girth of chest, girth of arm 
and forearm, capacity of lungs, power of expiration, and a 
simple test of muscular strength. These points, making 
about three thousand distinct items each year, are carefully 
recorded in a ledger, and in the course of time will become 
very valuable, when comparisons can be instituted between 
results recorded here at different periods, and similar results 
obtained in other Institutions and elsewhere. This is com- 
paratively a new field of inquiry, and when sufficient statis- 
tics are gathered, it will lead to the establishment of some 
very important facts, — such as the size and strength of 
particular limbs and muscles as increased by exercise, and 
also of the capacity and powder of the lungs as affected by 
the same means. The}^ will help to settle or throw some 
light upon what is the normal standard of students of the 
same age as it respects the several points given in these 
vital statistics, and then what are the best means or kinds 
of exercise to bring or keep them up to this standard. 

As far as these statistics are already collected, they 
present some curious and instructive facts. The average 
age of all the students for these eight years has been 21.723 
years ; Seniors 23.048, Juniors 22.329, Sophomores 21.241, 
and Freshmen 20.275. The average weight of all has been 
139.485 pounds ; Seniors 145.921, Juniors 139.999, Sopho- 
mores 139.979, and Freshmen 132.041. The average height 
has been 5.651 feet ; Seniors 5.634, Juniors 5.656, Sopho- 
mores 5.664 and Freshmen 5.651. In these two last items, 
(weight and height,) there was a decided gain to each class 
all the way through college, and they will compare favorably 
with other statistics collected upon these points. Quetelet, 
who has devoted more attention to this subject than any other 
writer, gives the average weight of an adult male 136.993 
pounds, and the average height 5.333 feet. 



29 



Dr. Gould, who examined a large number of students 
in the Junior and Senior Classes at Harvard University and 
Yale College, together v^ith some members of the professional 
schools, reports their average height 5.666 feet, and average 
weight 139.700 pounds. A. Maclaren, who has charge of 
the Gymnasium connected with the Oxford University, Eng- 
land, reports of the first one hundred names on his book as 
the}^ arrived at the University, their average height 5.825 
feet, and average weight 132.970 pounds. 

A careful inspection of the Table giving the vital sta- 
tistics of each class as it entered Amherst College, and then 
in its senior year, shows a decided enlargement of the arm 
at both points of measurement, and also of the girth of the 
chest, together with a marked increase in the capacity and 
power of the lungs. It is surprising what a change in sev- 
eral of these particulars some individuals have undergone 
in their college course. Instead of dwelling farther upon 
this part of the subject, the reader is referred to some facts 
and tables at the close of this paper. 

There is still another very important consideration, viz : 
has the standard of scholarship in college been raised by 
means of gymnastics ? As the system of marking or mode 
of exhibiting this standard was changed a few years since, 
an exact comparison in figures cannot here be instituted ; 
but it is the decided opinion of the Registrar, (the College 
Officer who has charge of these statistics,) that there " has 
been an elevation of rank within the past few years." It 
may be that some individuals in a class formerly reached as 
high scholarship as any now do ; but the aggregate scholar- 
ship of a whole class, we are confident, is higher now than 
it once was, and, to say the least, is much easier obtained, 
with fewer hours of study, and less loss of health and 
life. 



30 
V. Its Advantages. 

After having recounted in the preceding pages so many 
beneficial results of gymnastics, it may seem almost super- 
fluous to point out any further advantages, but there are 
some which have not yet been noticed, the value of which 
will be better seen and appreciated by way of comparison 
with other kinds of exercise. 1st — How can the student 
find, with so little loss of time and all the requisite mate- 
rials at command, other exercises equal in every respect to 
th-ese, where, at all seasons, he is protected in his person 
from the storms and the cold, and his character shielded - so 
much from temptation to bad habits as well as from immoral 
influences. 

2nd. In attempting to carry out the motto, '- mens 
Sana in corpore sano^' preference should always be given to 
those exercises in early life, which serve not only to keep 
the body sound at the time, but will help to lay such founda- 
tions as will afterwards tend most effectually to keep it so and 
improve it. Now no kind of gynmastics or physical exercises 
whatever is so well calculated to do this as those under 
discussion. As they are designed to exercise every muscle 
in the human body, and to produce a harmonious development 
of the whole system, we may reasonably expect that they 
will ward off local weaknesses, or abnormal developments. 
The more evenly balanced is the organization, or the more 
perfect the harmony in the temperaments, the sounder is the 
constitution, and the better is the general health. And what 
is there so important to the professional man as a well-bal- 
anced constitution, or uniformly good health ? What multi- 
tudes fail for the want of them ! Neither genius, talent nor 
learning can make up for them. 

3rd. Again, there is another advantage from such ex- 
ercises by way of creating self-reliance or availability of 
power. It is frequently found in public life that neither 



31 



brilliant talents nor great learning achieve success so often 
or so much as a ready skill, tact or aptness to use one's 
resources. The same is true from a physical point of view. 
It is not the mere possession of good health or sound consti- 
tution, however advantageous these may be, so much as the 
knowledge and control over the physical system obtained by 
years of gymnastic exercises, that gives that real self-reliance 
— that true self-possession which sustains one under all cir- 
cumstances and emergencies. In order to apply knowledge 
and mental power most successfully on all occasions, there 
must be combined with it a strong feeling of self-reliance, 
the outgrowth of a healthy, well-trained and evenly-balanced 
physical system. The full force of this statement can be 
appreciated only by those who have had experience in public 
life, and passed throngh changes that are not uncommon at 
the present day. 

4th. There is another advantage from these exercises 
worthy of notice, that is in preventing vicious and irregular 
habits. While no system of gymnastics alone can be ex- 
pected to break up settled habits of dissipation, such as intem- 
perance, licentiousness, and the excessive use of tobacco or 
any other stimulant, still, combined with other good influences, 
they have a direct tendency to forestall or arrest such practi- 
ces by giving a safe vent to the animal spirits, by regularity of 
physical exercise, by improving the general health, and pro- 
ducing a more normal condition of the brain. But there is 
a vice, (nameless here,) more terrible in its effects, both 
physical and mental, upon the student, than either of the 
above, and over which gymnastic exercises have great influ- 
ence. In fact, it is the testimony of the highest medical 
authorities, that regular and tolerably severe gymnastic ex- 
ercise is not only the most effective means of preventing or 
checking this vice, but is really the best curative agent. 
And it is a gratifying fact that we can add the testimony of 



32 

the Professor in this department, that gymnastics have been 
working to a like result in this Institution. 

5th. It is found that a regular system of gymnastics 
operates in a variety of ways as a powerful auxiliary of dis- 
cipline ; that it answers as a kind of safety valve to let off 
in an indirect way that excess of animal spirits which is 
characteristic of some young men, and which not unfre- 
quently leads them into trouble or conflict with authority. 
Again it serves with others as a kind of regulator to the 
system, exercising certain parts of it to such an extent as to 
produce weariness and fatigue, so that the individual seeks 
repose ; and with another class it tends to remove any un- 
natural or innate weakness of the frame, and by such im- 
provements serves to equalize and regulate all the forces of 
nature. Thus such a system of gymnastics sets up a stand- 
ard of laiv for self-government ; for it is based upon those 
great laws of life and health which are a part of the will and 
government of God in this world, as much as the ten com- 
mandments. No by-laws or code of ethics established by any 
human teacher or institution can compare in authority or 
final appeal to those great natural, primeval laws engraved 
upon our constitutions by the Creator. It will be seen at 
once what a poiuer the instructor has over the conscience and 
reason of a student thus trained. There are, it is well 
known, in every institution various misdemeanors and overt 
acts, which may not come under any formal rule, with plau- 
sible excuses for the same ; but here, in the laws of our own 
being, we have always at hand a standard of appeal. It is 
based upon that sacred injunction, " do thyself no harm." 
Every well-informed teacher, and especially one versed in 
the laws of physiology, will see almost intuitively the great 
importance and convenience of having such a standard of 
law hv private as well as public discipline. Said President 
Felton to the writer, shortly before his decease, referring to 
the gymnastics at Amherst which he had just witnessed ; 



33 



^' Such a system of physical exercises thoroughly understood 
and applied by the members of Harvard University, v^ould 
aid me in the matter of discipline in that Institution more 
than anything else." We are here authorized to state, that 
the Faculty of Amherst College have found great assist- 
ance in government from this source ; — that since the intro- 
duction of this department, the cases requiring discipline 
have been far less numerous, and more easily managed, than 
formerly. 

6th. Within a fev^ years great interest has arisen with 
reference to physical exercises, partly on the score of amuse- 
ment and recreation, but more for the sake of sanitary 
advantages. Fev7 of these exercises are new, but a fresh 
interest in many quarters has been kindled up in their 
behalf The following list comprises most of them : walk- 
ing, horseback riding, skating, cricket and croquet playing, 
gymnastics and calisthenics, base-ball, foot-ball, boating, &c. 
Now no two of these exercises are precisely alike ; they all 
have their peculiarities, calling into exercise dilferent classes 
of muscles, and exerting diverse influences upon the system. 
The great objection to some of these exercises is, that they 
call into practice only a few muscles, and that over and over 
again. Others do not have that physiological influence upon 
the brain, nor produce that pleasurable excitement in the 
mind that is desirable. In fact it is found difficult to keep 
up the interest in many of them for months or years, with- 
out resorting to collateral aids, such as set games, bets or a 
species of gambling. 

Walking, the oldest of all exercises and the most exten- 
sively practiced, has many advantages — calling into play a 
large part of the muscles; — requires no expense, — is pur- 
sued in the open air ; — and, when one has leisure, pleasant 
company and objects or attractions sufficient to interest the 
mind, no better physical exercise can be found. 



34 

Horse-back riding and skating may be reckoned among 
the most delightful exercises ; but then these, to say nothing 
of the expense, can be enjoyed only at particular seasons of 
the year or in certain kinds of weather ; and, to be rendered 
really pleasant and profitable, one must have company of the 
right stamp. These exercises are admirably fitted for indi- 
viduals or small companies in pursuit of pleasure or health, 
or to resort to occasionally, but could never be practiced 
regularly and systematically by a large body of students. 

In pleasant weather children and young ladies can find 
no better physical exercise than in cricket and croquet 
playing, but, when congregated in school or in seminary, 
calisthenics afford in these places the best kind of exercise 
for them. It is an encouraging flict that more and more 
attention is being devoted to such training both in the 
School and in the Family. Base Ball, — always popular 
and formerly practiced somewhat extensively, — has of late 
years come into great favor, and may be considered almost 
a national game. The effects of this exercise as a whole 
upon the system are decidedly beneficial. It is peculiarly 
calculated to call into practice nearly all the muscles of the 
limbs, as well as most of those of the trunk. The manner 
in which all parts of the body are called into action, afford- 
ing a constant change of muscle, and variety in the rapidity 
of movement are very conducive to the promotion of both 
health and strength. But when this game is played with 
great zeal, there may be danger, in the too rapid and long 
continued exercise of running and violent efforts at striking 
the ball, of producing an injurious effect upon the heart and 
lungs, 1st, by increasing the circulation of the blood to an 
unnatural extent, and, 2nd, by causing a congested state of 
both these organs. If there should happen to be any con- 
stitutional weakness or abnormal formation here, the injurious 
effect and the danger would be still greater. There is also 



35 



an objection to this kind of exercise from the intense and 
general excitement sometimes created by competition, and 
again by resorts to wagers or bets. The sanitary effiect is 
entirely lost sight of in the strife for victory. As this game 
can be carried on only in pleasant weather, and requires 
extensive grounds where the numbers are large, it is not at 
all well suited to the wants of an Institution whose members 
require daily exercise throughout the year. 

The only remaining exercise that can properly claim 
attention is that of Boating. Just at the present time this 
is creating very great interest both on the part of the public 
as well as of some of our literary institutions. While, on 
the one hand there are great advantages, physical and men- 
tal, arising from this kind of exercise, on the other there are 
evils of a most serious character. In order to ascertain its 
real hygienic or sanitary effects it becomes necessary to 
examine the physiological changes it produces. There are 
two styles or modes of rowing, and where long training has 
been had the effect is marked in the difference of physical 
development. One mode increases particularly the muscles 
of the arms, shoulders and chest, while the other enlarges 
more the muscles of the legs, hips and back. By the former 
style, the rowers bend the back, bow the head forwards, and 
raise the shoulders, making a long, sweeping stroke without 
dipping the oar very deep into the water. But by the other 
mode, the back is more erect, the feet are firmly braced, the 
rower resting upon the oar, partly, does the work more with 
his legs, hips and back. Sometimes these two styles of 
rowing are blended together, and the development of muscle 
is more equal. In either case a powerful strain comes upon 
the back and chest, exerting a great influence over the func- 
tions of respiration and circulation. This effect is well 
described in the following quotation from the London Lan- 
cet of January, 1868 : "the action of rowing interferes more 



36 



directly with the respiratory process than almost any other 
exercise. In running. — which, however, is equally liable to 
injurious excess. — it is within the power of the voluntary 
muscles to regulate the rate of the respiratory movements ; 
and it is well known that a well-expanded chest and rhyth- 
mic breathing greatly diminish the disturbing effects of 
exercise upon the heart and lungs. But in rowing the 
chest is nearly always fixed, and the respiratory movements 
are only possible in the short interval of rest at the termi- 
nation of the stroke. As the racing pace is forty strokes 
per minute, the rate of respiration is doubled, and the act 
itself, being necessarily shortened, is reduced to a mere 
involuntary gasp. Under these circumstances the lungs be- 
come rapidly congested and the heart seriously oppressed. 
It involves a draught on the muscular, and w^e should add, 
nervous and respirator}^ powers of those engaged in it more 
or less injurious to their future health, some temporarily, 
others permanently." 

Mr. Skey, one of the most eminent surgeons in Great 
Britain, in an article discussing this subject, in the London 
Times, 1867, referring to the condition of the crews at the 
termination of the races as he had witnessed it, describes it 
thus ; " the men look utterly exhausted. Their white and 
sunken features and palid lips show serious congestion of 
the heart and lungs, and the air of weakness and lassitude 
makes it a marvel how such great exertion should have been 
so nobly undergone. We have repeatedly seen the after ill- 
effects, spitting of blood, congested lungs, and weakness of 
the heart and great vessels from over distention of their 
walls ; and we are therefore of the opinion, that some re- 
strictions should be put upon the candidates for boating 
honors, and that the regulations for training should be based 
upon scientific principles rather than the crude dogmas of a 
blind experience." Dr. Hope, one of the most distinguished 



37 



writers upon diseases of the heart, gives it as a settled opin- 
ion, that "hard exercise in rowing" is one of the most 
prominent causes of heart disease. 

There can be but one opinion on the part of the medical 
profession in our own country as well as in Great Britain, 
as to the injurious effect of boat-racing upon the constitution 
and health. If the exercise could be practiced moderately 
or upon scientific principles, the profession, we presume, would 
be equally agreed that its sanitary effects were decidedly 
beneficial. Here is the difficulty ; — can its practice be kept 
within proper bounds, or be conducted upon right principles, 
where especially large numbers of young men are concerned, 
representing different localities, communities and institutions? 
But the welfare of the hody is not alone endangered: — what 
can be said respecting the exposure of regular habits and 
good morals of young men on too many public occasions 
growing out of boating and boat racing ? Let the public 
accounts given us by the press answer. As this exercise is 
now conducted, and is likely to be, is it becoming scholars 
and educated men to engage in it, or wise for our public 
institutions to encourage it ? 

VI. Its Importance. 

That there is a most intimate and necessary connection 
between the improvement of the mind and the culture of 
the body all will admit. It is now pretty well established 
by the highest authorities in medical science, that the brain 
is, in some sense, the organ of tJie mind, — that all mental 
manifestations in this world depend very much upon the size 
and quality of the brain, and the various agencies affecting 
its functions. If, therefore, all intellectual culture is not 
only dependent upon, but, in a great measure, controlled and 
limited by certain physical conditions, it is of the highest 



38 

importance in the course of a liberal education, to under- 
stand what these conditions are, and to be able to turn them 
to the best possible account. And it is not alone the rela- 
tions which the brain itself sustains to the mind that are 
important, but those are equally so, in some respects, which 
it bears to other parts of the body. For instance, it is well 
known, that the mind is sometimes greatly affected by the 
state of the stomach, the liver and the digestive organs 
generally. In fact there can scarcely be a diseased or 
abnormal condition of any organ in the human system that 
will not have some influence upon the mind. Now while the 
primary object of gymnastics is to facilitate, in the highest 
degree, mental culture for the time being, they tend also, 
when properly conducted, to prevent disease by checking or 
removing in their incipient stages those weaknesses or pre- 
dispositions which,' if neglected, will inevitably terminate in 
sickness of some kind. And to do this most successfully 
every part or organ of the body must receive its due pro- 
portion of exercise, and that too not only in harmony with 
the laws that govern its own functions but with the laws 
and functions of every other part or organ of the system. 
For it is in this way that the greatest measure of health as 
well as of strength and longevity are secured. 

The human body in its normal or most healthy state, 
may be compared to a perfect machine, made up of a great 
variety of parts, each part performing its ow^n work, doing 
just so much and no more, and not interfering with the 
exercise of others, so that the wear and tear will come upon 
all parts of the machinery alike. The lungs, the heart, and 
the stomach, &c., have each a specific work to do, which 
requires a certain amount of exercise of not only the muscles 
immediately connected with these organs, but of the muscles 
more or less, in all other parts of the system. For illustra- 
tion, in order that the lungs should become well developed and 



39 



receive healthy exercise, it is indispensible that the muscles 
about the chest and shoulders be properly trained, no less 
than those of the arms and the legs. 

There are several modes or kinds of exercise in popular 
use, which however otherwise allow^able, are open to this 
objection, viz., that they develop and strengthen mainly the 
extreme portions of the body. Health and strength are not 
synonymous terms. A person may have great strength in 
his limbs or in certain muscles about the body, but really 
not have good health. It is altogether a mistaken idea to 
suppose, that physical exercises have for their sole object 
the attainment of strength. There are other tissues and 
organs in the human system besides the muscular ; and, 
the healthy action of the lungs and the stomach is far 
more important than great strength in the arms, legs, or 
the back. It is here, in this general exercise of all the 
muscles and parts of the body, that the system of gymnas- 
tics advocated in this paper has its great excellence. It 
aims to produce just that development of the human system 
upon which good health is permanently based, described by 
a distinguished writer as follows; — "health is the uniform 
and regular performance of all the functions of the body, 
arising from the harmonious action of all its parts, — a physi- 
cal condition implying that all are sound, well-fitting and 
well matched. Some minds do not look far enough into life to 
see this distinction, or to value it if seen ; they fix their eyes 
longingly upon strength — upon strength now^ and seemingly 
care not for the power to work long, to work well, to work 
successfully hereafter, which is Health. 

There is another, a higher and more commanding posi- 
tion from which this subject may be viewed : — it is in the 
light of steivardship — of accountability to God for all the 
gifts, the powers and talents that He has entrusted to our 
care. These bodies, however we may pamper or abuse them, 



40 



are not our own. They are a sacred trust from the Al- 
mighty, for the use and improvement of which we shall 
individually be held responsible in the great day of accounts 
no less than for mental talents and acquirements. When 
the inter-depenent relations of body and mind are considered 
in their true light with reference to the life eternal^ it is 
scarcely possible to overstate or overestimate the importance 
of ph^/sical culture. 



APPENDIX. 



Statistics in the Department of Physical Education and Hygiene 
in Amherst College, extending from September, 1861, to September, 
1869: 

VITAL STATISTICS — EIGHT YEARS. 













0.2I 






Classes. 


H M ^ 
'd 




H °^ CO 
« » oj 

^ O OJ 


W'd 

in 
IP 




III 








.g 


0-" 


W fl S3 





Seniors, 


23.048 


5.634 


145.921 


36.772 


258.872 


11.708 


11.360 


Juniors, 


22.329 


5.656 


139.999 


35.929 


248.200 


11.758 


10.853 


Sophomores, - - - 


21.241 


5.664 


139.979 


35.974 


261.004 


11.588 


9.982 


Freshmen, - - - - 


20.275 


5.651 


132.041 


35.904 


239.288 


11.396 


8.851 


Averages, ... - 


21.723 


5.651 


139.485 


36.144 


250.841 


11.612 


10.261 



STATISTICS OF DISABILITIES — EIGHT YEARS. 





(m 















-d 


Classes. 


il 

Am 


1 . 

u 


pi 


sa i> OB 

g_^ 


fl'dbC 


^ CO 


ill 

aj 03 0) 


^ 0) QJ 

-d >s 




?4 


^ -g 


oils 


ll- 


-■'^^ 


hC°- 


rii 


^s-s 






fi S3 


^ S =s 




0;„ sS 


■r^ 


S ^ s^ 




S 


^ « 


SB" 


Ph ^ 


^°s 


ts 


>'S'3 




^" 


<J 


<% 


-d 




^■z 


<° 





Seniors, - 




48.500 


5.625 


1-8 or 0.119 


l-45th 








Juniors, - 


224 


52.375 


8.571 


1-6 or 0.160 


l-28th 


38.250 


11.756 


2.211 


Sophomores, 




61.250 


12.125 


1-5 or 0.197 


l-18th 








Freshmen, 




61.875 


14.375 


1-4 or 0.232 


l-16th 








Averages, 




56.000 


10.174 















42 



FORMS OF DISABILITY AND THE NUMBER OF CASES, 
FOR EIGHT YEARS. 



Colds and Pneumonia, ... 88 

Mumps, 20 

Mechanical Injury, .... 38 

Boils, 23 

Meningitis, (partly of a moral character) 20 



Diphtheria, 

General Debility, . 

Bilious Fever, 

Typhoid Fever, 

Gastric Irritation, . 

Intestinal Irritation, 

Dysentery, 

Sore Eyes, 

Quinsy and Sore Throat, 

Teeth, . . . . 

Colic, . . . . 

Diarrhea, 

Chicken Pox, . 

Headache, 

Scrofulous Tumor, 



Intermittent Fever, 
Liver Complaint, . 
Skin Disease, . 
Nervous Irritability, 
Sciatica, . 
Face-ache, 
Abscess, . 
Pleurisy, . 
Jaundice, 

Vacation Excess, . 
Ivy Poison, 
Cholera Morbus, . 
Neuralgia, 
Camp Fever, . 
Ulcer, 

Constipation, . 
Piles, 

SAvelled Face, 
Fistula, . 
Doubtful, 



TESTIMONY IN FAVOR OF THE GYMNASIUM. 

Amherst College, June 14th, 1865. 

The Class of 1865, having completed its studies in Amherst Col- 
lege, desires to express its high appreciation of the physical culture 
which it has received under the direction of Prof. Hitchcock. As 
this class is the first one in College which has enjoyed through its 
whole course this j^hysical training, some expression of opinion seems 
quite proper. There have been ninety-two different students con- 
nected with the class, fifty-five of which now graduate ; eight have 
died, — two with consumption, and six in the Army from wounds or 
disease. There is no one of the graduating class but could pass a 
complete examination for life insurance or admission into the United 
States Army. From a thorough trial of four years' course of train- 
ing, we can fairly judge of the system here adopted. Our exercises 
have been conducted in a well-furnished gymnasium, and always under 



43 



the direction of the Professor in this department. We have found 
the required attendance — a part of the system — not at all objec- 
tionable, and, what at first in the exercise was a little embarrassing 
or unpleasant, soon became a positive pleasure. The simultaneous 
participation of many persons in the same exercises has contributed 
a lively zest to them, when otherwise they would have proved dull 
and uninteresting. These exercises have been so varied in character 
as to be adapted both to the strongest and the weakest student, con- 
ducing alike to health, strength and grace of action. The half-hour 
required for exercise has proved the golden mean between length and 
brevity of time for this purpose, and has never been considered lost 
by us, as our health at the close of our college course testifies to the 
inestimable value of this training. We are confident, if this matter 
of exercise had been left a voluntary thing, many of our class, who 
are now strong and healthy, would have yielded to the diseases inci- 
dent to student life, while others, who were weak and slender boys 
on entering college, are now strong and vigorous men. Cases of pro- 
tracted illness have been almost unknown among us, and large num- 
bers in the class have not been detained by illness from a single col- 
lege duty. Believing that a strong body is the best bulwark to a 
sound mind — that strong muscles and well-develoj^ed limbs are pow- 
erful aids to the brain, — and being indebted very much for these re- 
sults in our case to the physical training we have received in Amherst 
College, — we give this voluntary testimony to the value of the system 
of gymnastics here adopted. 

E. P. Frost, 

M. K. Pasco, y Committee. 

A. H. HOWLAIS^D, 



Amherst College, May 7th, 1869. 
Dr. Nathan Allen : 

Dear Sir, — 

The Senior Class learn through Prof Hitch- 
cock that you would be gratified to receive an expression of our 
opinion as to the value of our gymnasium exercises after a four years' 
experience. * It gives us great pleasure to send you a copy of the reso- 
lutions adopted unanimously by the class as follows : 

"Whereas, We, the members of the class of 1869, Amherst 
College, have been under gymnasium drill for the past four years, 



44 



and knowing that an expression of our opinion of it is desired, there- 
fore 

" Mesolved^ That the daily required exercise, as at present con- 
ducted by Prof Edward Hitchcock, by the happy union of pleasure 
and exercise is exactly suited to our needs, giving us strength and 
vigor for our other duties, and developing a more manly physique. 
Therefore, 

" Besolved^ That we convey to the friends of the gymnasium our 
hearty thanks for its foundation and support." 

You will not understand of course, when we say " exactly suited," 
that we consider that the gymnastic system is brought to perfection. 
We refer to the union of exercise and pleasure, which contributes so 
much to make everything pleasant, and which we do not think can 
be changed for anything better. 

With great respect, 

Alvah B. Kitteedge, 

Joseph B. Seabuey, y Committee. 

Geo. M. Gage, 



TESTIMONY OF STUDENTS. 

Numerous testimonials from this source might be obtained, but 
only two cases will here be stated, of students coming to college 
from city life, who experienced great changes — one in his moral 
character, and the other in his physical condition — by means of this 
Department. The first says, in a letter to Dr. Hitchcock : " As my 
college course draws to a close, I owe it to you to state how com- 
pletely my opinion has changed in reference to your department in 
college. I came here, you remember, from the city, with certain diU 
letante and delicate-handed notions, which led me to look with some 
contempt upon the gymnasium, though I was soon obliged to submit 
to its salutary authority. For this I can never he too grateful. .... 
I have reason to believe that the melancholy which always clouded 
my intellectual and religious life, would still shut out the cheerful 
health and sunshine I now enjoy, had it not been for the beneficial 
effects of the physical exercises in your department, combined with 
your kind and faithful treatment." 



45 

The other student referred to writes as follows : " When I came 
to Amherst College, my physical condition could not be called good. 
My limbs were slender, — my flesh was thin ; I feared trouble from 
my lungs, and not unfrequently had spells of sickness of different 
kinds. Since my connection with college, I have been almost con- 
stantly well, and, when I have been otherwise, I have generally been 
able to trace my illness to some violation of the laws of health. This 
change I ascribe mainly to gymnastic training. During my first 
year, my arms increased in size two inches, and my chest three 
inches. I have exercised more than most students, and so perhaps 
but few of them could show so great gain, but my exercise has never 

interfered in the least with my studies The general health of 

college students is not only better during their college course, but it 
has uniformly improved, so much so that there is a marked difference 
in the very appearance of the classes as they advance in standing. 
The round shoulders, lank limbs and listless motions of the lower 
classes are in striking contrast with the erect carriage, robust frame 
and vigorous action which, as a rule, are exhibited by those who have 
been in college two or three years. Of course, there are some well- 
developed physiques among the Freshmen, and some who are far from 
being muscular among the Seniors ; but generally the fact is as stated 
above." 



REGULATIONS FOR THE USE OF THE GYMNASIUM 
AND BOWLING ALLEYS. 

The Gymnasium is open for exercise from sunrise until evening 
prayer time, excepting the hour for dinner. 

1. No person is allowed to use the Parallel Bars, the Rack Bars, 
the Ladders, or the Incline Board, without slippers. 

2. During the regular class exercise, no member of the class will 
be admitted to it without his complete uniform ; and each student 
will keep his position in the ranks during the whole exercise. 

3. Persons not connected with college, even if invited by one 
of its members, cannot be allowed to exercise in any part of the 
building, without special permission from the Professor, and no per- 
son, not a member of the college, can at any time use any of the 
apparatus, or an alley, to the exclusion of any member of college. 

4. A party after using an alley for one game, must give way, if 
others are waiting for their turn. 



46 



5. It is forbidden to tlirow the balls on the alleys, or indulge in 
any but the legitimate game. The balls must never be sent from 
East to West except in the gutters made for the purpose. 

6. It is also forbidden to smoke, or spit on the floors, or litter 
them ; to use improper language, or indulge in violent or boisterous 
conduct. 

7. Each person, after using any piece of the movable apparatus, 
will at once, in an orderly way, return it to its proper place. 

8. Persons wantonly or carelessly injuring the building or any 
of its apparatus, will be held strictly accountable therefor. 



MOTTO OF THE BARRETT GYMNASIUM. 

" Such are the dominating powers with which we, and we alone, 
are gifted ! I say gifted, for the surpassing organization was no work 
of ours. It is He that hath made us ; not we ourselves. This frame 
is a temporary trust, for the uses of which we are responsible to the 
Maker. 

" Oh ! you who possess it in the supple vigor of lusty youth, think 
well what it is that He has committed to your keeping. Waste not 
its energies ; dull them not by sloth ; spoil them not by pleasures ! 
The supreme work of creation has been accomplished that you might 
possess a body — the soul erect — of all animal bodies the most free, 
and for what ? for the service of the soul. 

" Strive to realize the conditions of the possession of this won- 
drous structure. Think what it may become, — the Temple of the 
Holy Spirit ! Defile it not. Seek, rather to adorn it with all meek 
and becoming gifts, with that fair furniture, moral and intellectual, 
which it is your inestimable privilege to acquire through the teachings 
and examples and ministrations of this Seat of Sound Learning and 
Religious Education." — \_Prof. Owen^ British Museum, Lo7idon.'\ 



(^ x^<y^AJ(A^o.AAs c^^^ }(WcmKOo X\ 



PHYSICAL CULTURE 



AMHEKST COLLEGE 



NATHAN ALLEN. M. D. 



PREPARED BY THE REQUEST OF THE TRUSTEES. 



LOWELL, MASS: 

STONE & HUSE, BOOK PRINTERS 

1869. 



^'^ 






